The compounds as defined by the above formula (I) are novel compounds, and their use in perfumery has never been described or suggested. They carry an aldehyde function or a nitrile function and all have a characteristic, green-lemon type odor which is of considerable value in perfumery.
One embodiment of the invention is drawn to the compounds of the above formula (I) in which X is a C.tbd.N group, i.e. belonging to the nitrile chemical family, which are particularly appropriate for use in aggressive media. A further embodiment are the corresponding aldehydes of similar chemical structure which show the same odor type as the said nitrites.
It should be mentioned that a large number of compounds belonging to the nitrile chemical family are known in the perfume industry. In the context of the present invention, one can cite the nitrites specified hereinafter, which are currently used in perfumery, in particular in functional perfumery.
Geranyl nitrile (3,7-dimethyl-2,6-octadienenitrile) possesses a strong green, chemical odor resembling that of citral (Z-3,7-dimethyl-2,6-octadienal), the latter being itself a compound of widespread use in perfumery applications and of natural occurrence.
Citronellyl nitrile (3,7-dimethyl-6-octenenitrile) shows an olfactive note reminiscent of the odor of lemon, with an undernote characteristic of the nitriles. The citrus note is likewise quite pronounced in Ozonil.RTM. (mixture of 2-tridecenenitrile and 3-tridecenenitrile; origin: Haarmann & Reimer, Germany), but there are also present notes of the mandarine-fruity, peach type, which are associated with a floral undernote.
Finally, citronitrile (3-methyl-5-phenyl-2-pentenenitrile) shows an odor of the same type as the compounds mentioned beforehand, namely of the fruity-citrus type.
Detergents, deodorants or antiperspirants and soaps are examples of products which are aggressive media, in which citral, for example, which can be considered as the typical compound representing the citrus-type odor, with its powerful citrus-green note, is unstable, preventing it from being used in functional perfumery, and this in spite of its odor which is very prized by perfumers.
Now, in spite of showing olfactive similarities with citral, the known nitrites described above do not possess its olfactive quality. Their odor notes are less characteristic of lemon, less fresh-citrus, and a fatty-metallic connotation is found in all these nitrites. For these reasons, the search for nitrites stable in aggressive media and possessing an odor close to the citrus-green note of the odor of citral continues to be a task of actuality.